Huli-huli chicken is a grilled chicken dish in Hawaiian cuisine, prepared by barbecuing a chicken over mesquite wood, and basting it with a sweet huli-huli sauce.^[1]

In 1954, Ernest Morgado, a naval intelligence officer during World War II, and Mike Asagi, a chicken farmer, founded the Pacific Poultry Company in 'Ewa, Hawaii. The next year, at a meeting with farmers, Morgado and Asagi first barbecued chicken in a teriyaki-like sauce, Morgado's mother's recipe.^[2][3][4] After seeing its popularity, Morgado began cooking huli-huli chicken at fundraisers. Millions of dollars have been raised over the years for charities by selling huli-huli chicken, according to Morgado's stepson.^[2] Fundraisers at churches and schools selling huli-huli chicken were common around Hawaii for many years.^[5]

Huli is the Hawaiian word for "turn."^[6] As the dish was originally made on a grill with a makeshift spit, onlookers shouted "huli" when the chickens were to be rotated, cooking and basting the other side.^[7][8] Morgado, through the Pacific Poultry Company, trademarked "huli-huli" in 1967.^[7][9]

Morgado became famous with his huli-huli chicken recipe. He served on the Hawaii Board of Agriculture,^[10] was appointed honorary vice consul of Portugal,^[11] and was awarded the Honolulu Portuguese Chamber of Commerce's "Council's Cup" in 1981.^[2] Later, beginning in 1986, Morgado bottled and sold huli-huli sauce in stores.^[2][7]

Today, huli-huli chicken can be found around Hawaii, in restaurants, road-side stands, mini-marts and drive-ins.^[12][13] At many locations, chicken are cooked on racks en masse and sold.^[14]

Morgado never released his huli-huli sauce recipe, though other chefs have made approximations.^[7]

Most recipes call for a glaze or sauce with ingredients including pineapple juice, ketchup, soy sauce, honey or brown sugar, sesame oil, ginger, and garlic.^{[1][7][8][15]} Some recipes may call for lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, Sriracha^[8] or red pepper flakes,^[7] rice wine or sherry vinegar,^[15] chicken broth, white wine, or mustard.^[16] Some recipes call for brining the chicken in a solution with kosher salt, sugar, bay leaves, garlic,^[15] sesame oil, or thyme,^[17] before marinating it in the sauce.

The chicken can be cooked on a grill or a rotisserie. While cooking, it is regularly basted with the glaze, and turned over ("huli-ed").^[17] Mesquite (kiawe) wood chips are traditionally used to add a smoky flavor.^[1]

• List of chicken dishes
• Rotisserie chicken